Mapping the structure-function relationship along macroscale gradients in the human brain.

Area of Science:

• Neuroscience
• Computational Neuroscience
• Cognitive Neuroscience

Background:

• Functional brain coactivation is partly explained by white matter connectivity.
• The variability of the structure-function relationship across different cognitive and perceptual functions remains poorly understood.

Purpose of the Study:

• To map structure-function correspondence across hundreds of specific brain functions and regions.
• To identify macroscale brain gradients correlating with structure-function coupling and cortical thickness.
• To explore how the relationship between brain structure and function differs across diverse neural processes.

Main Methods:

• Utilized large neuroimaging data repositories to compute structure-function correspondence maps.
• Employed natural language processing (NLP) to predict structure-function relationships for specific functions.
• Analyzed macroscale gradients in relation to structure-function coupling and cortical thickness.

Main Results:

• Structure-function correspondence follows a sensory-fugal organizational axis.
• Primary sensory and motor cortices show higher correspondence for perceptual and motor functions.
• Association cortices exhibit lower correspondence for complex cognitive functions.

Conclusions:

• The coupling between brain structure and function is not uniform but varies systematically across the brain.
• This regional and functional specificity provides insights into neural network diversity and evolution.
• Bridging neuroscience and NLP advances our understanding of brain organization.